From couch potato to marathon maniac

Transformation Tuesday #16

It’s been almost two months since my last #transformationtuesday post, so it’s time for another one! There’s about a 60 pound difference between these two beach vacation getaway pictures!

In 2009 I spent some time on the beaches of Thailand. Just recently I spent some time on the beaches of Mexico. On both trips I felt as though I was “active”. The difference, however, is that on my recent trip I was intentional in my exercise. Yes, I visited the gym at my resort. Yes, I got up early to go for a run while on vacation.

Why? Because I knew that I would feel better if I got my exercise in. Because I wanted to feel confident in my swimwear. Because I knew how much food and drink I’d be indulging in.

Bottom line is that my weight loss has not been about just losing weight. It’s been about a lifestyle change. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. It was insanity to think I could starve myself, not set exercise as a priority, lose weight, and keep it off. I tried this on and off from 2001-2009. The definition of crazy, as I’m often called as it pertains to my long distance running, is extremely enthusiastic.

Yes, crazy describes me to a T! For 7 years now I’ve been setting exercise as a priority, eating smarter, and amazingly the weight has dropped and stayed off! I’m so enthusiastic about this because it has worked unlike anything else I’ve ever tried!

Friends, wherever you may be on your journey today, may you know that anything worth having is never easy to get. To change your lifestyle it’s going to be hard, it’s going to feel slow at times, but the reward on the flip side is going to be SO worth having! Yes, this pertains to running, weight loss, earning degrees, etc. You’ve got this!